
==Introduction== [[Image:Emamzadeh-hamzeh.jpg|thumb|right|Domes like this are quite common in Khuzestan province. The shape is an architectural trademark of craftsmen of this province. Daniel's shrine, located in Khuzestan, has such a shape. The shrine pictured here, belongs to Imamzadeh Hamzeh, located between Mah-shahr and Hendijan.]] Khuzestan is one of the 30 provinces of Iran of Iran. It is in the south-west of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its center is Ahvaz and covers an area of 63,238 sq. km. Other major cities include Behbahan, Abadan, Andimeshk, Khorramshahr, Bandar Imam, Dezful, Shushtar, Omidiyeh, Izeh, Baq-e-Malek, Mah Shahr, Dasht-e-Azadegan, Ramhormoz, Shadegan, Susa, Masjed Soleiman, Minoo Island and Hoveizeh. Historically Khuzestan is what historians refer to as ancient Elam, whose capital was in Susa, and in previous ages, Iranians referred to this province as Elam. The Old Persian term for Elam was ''Hujiyā'', which is present in the modern name. Khuzestan is the most ancient Iranian province and is often referred to in Iran as the ''"birthplace of the nation,"'' as this is the area where Aryan tribes first settled, assimilating the native Elamite population, and thus laying the foundation for the future empires of Persia, Medes , and Parthia. Khuzestan is also where Jondishapour was located. Khuzestan has 18 representatives in Iran's parliament, Majlis of Iran, and 6 representatives in the Assembly of Experts. ==Geography and Climate== According to the 1996 census, the province had an estimated population of 3.7 million people, of which approximately 62.5% were in the urban centres, 36.5% were rural dwellers and the remaining 1% were non-residents. The province of Khuzestan can be basically divided into two regions, i.e. the plains and mountainous regions. The former being in the south and west of the province. This area is irrigated by the ''Karun'', ''Karkheh'' and ''Jarahi'' rivers. The mountainous regions are situated to the north and east of the province, and are considered to be a part of southern regions of the Zagros mountain ranges. With regard to natural conditions, Khuzestan has unrivaled potentials unmatched by any other province in the country. Large permanent rivers flow over the entire territory contributing to the fertility of the land. Karun, Iran's largest river, 850 kilometers long, flows into the Persian Gulf through this province. The climate of Khuzestan is generally hot and humid, particularly in the south, while winters are much more pleasant and dry. ==People and Culture== Khuzestan, unlike other provinces in Iran, is inhabited by a number of ethnic minorities and peoples. Arabic-speakers and Arabs of Khuzestan tribes, Bakhtiari, Behbahanis, and Lurs of the north, the Qashqai, the Afshari tribes, the peoples of Dezful, Shushtar, and the inhabitants of the Persian Gulf coasts all make up the population of the province of Khuzestan. There are no official ethnic statistics released by Iran's government. The Persian groups of western Khuzestan all speak distinct dialects unique to their areas. Many Khuzestanis are bilingual, speaking both Persian language and Arabic language. It is also not uncommon to find people able to speak a variety of indigenous dialects in addition to their own. Khuzestani folk music is colorful and festive, and each native group has their own rich traditions and legacy in this area. The people of Khuzestan are generally very religious and most are Shi'a, with small Sunni, Jewish, and Christian minorities. Khuzestanis are also very well regarded for their hospitality and generosity. Seafood is the most important part of Khuzestani cuisine, but many other dishes are also featured. A popular dish is called ''soboor'' (shad), a species of fish found in southern Iranian waters, which is prepared with heavy spices, onions, and cilantro. Other provincial specialties include ''ghalieh mahi'' (fish stew), ''ghalieh maigu'' (shrimp stew), ''aasheh mohshalah'' (breakfast soup; in Khorramshahr), ''sarshir'' (heavy cream; in Andimeshk), and ''haleem'' (breakfast wheatmeal with lamb; in Shushtar). Many scientists, philosophers, and poets have come from Khuzestan, including Abu Nuwas, Abdollah-lbn-Meymoon Ahvazi, the astronomer Naubakht and his sons; as well as Jorjis, the son of Bukhtishu; Ibn Sakit, Da'bal-e-Khazai, and many more. ==The origin of the name ''Khuzestan''== '' Main article: Origin of the name Khuzestan '' The name ''Khuzestan'', which means "The Land of the Khuzi," refers to the original inhabitants of this province, the ''Khuzi'' people. The province, however, has also been called ''Arabistan'' at times, particularly after the Arab Muhammad ibn Falah, leader of the ''Msha'sha'iya'', initiated a wave of attacks on Khuzestan in 1440 CE, leading to a gradual increase in the Arab population of Khuzestan. Reza Pahlavi, however, restored the original name of the province in 1923. ==History== [[Image:Choghazanbil2.jpg|thumb|right|The ziggurat of Choqa Zanbil in Khuzestan was a magnificent structure of the Iranian Elamite Empire.]]Shush_castle,_Susa,_Iran.">Image:Shush-castle.jpg|thumb|right|Shush castle, Susa, Iran.The province of Khuzestan is one of the centres of ancient civilization, based around Susa. French archeologists such as Jaques De Morgan date the civilization here as far back as 8000 BCE when excavating areas such as ''Tal e Ali Kosh''. The first large scale empire based here was that of the powerful 4th millennium BCE Elamite Empire, a non-Semitic kingdom independent of Mesopotamia. Archeological ruins verify the entire province of Khuzestan to be home to the Elamite Empire civilization, ''"the earliest civilization of Persia"'' (according to ''A History of Persia'', S. Percy Sykes, p38). As was stated in the preceding section, the name ''Khuzestan'' is derived from the Elamites (''Ūvja'' according to ''The Cambridge History of Iran'', 2, 259, ISBN 0521060351), a non-Semitic people unrelated to their northern neighbors in Mesopotamia. (see introduction of ''The Splendour of Iran'', E. Booth-Clibborn, ISBN 1861540116) In fact, in the words of Elton Daniel, the Elamites were ''"the founders of the first Iranian empire in the geographic sense."'' (''The History of Iran'', p26, ISBN 0313000301) Hence the central geopolitical significance of Khuzestan, the seat of Iran's first empire. In 640 BC, the Elamites were defeated by Ashurbanipal coming under the rule of the Assyrians who wrought destruction upon Susa and Chogha Zanbil. But in 538 BC Cyrus II of Persia was able to re-conquer the Elamite lands. The city of Susa was then proclaimed as one of the Achaemenian capitals. Darius I of Persia then erected a grand palace known as ''Hadish'' there in 521 BC. But this astonishing period of glory and splendour of the Achaemenian dynasty came to an end by the conquests of Alexander of Macedon. And after Alexander, the Seleucid dynasty ruled the area. As the Seleucid dynasty weakened, Mithridates I of Parthia the Parthian (171-137 BCE), gained victory over the region. During the Sassanid dynasty this area thrived tremendously and flourished, and this dynasty was responsible for the many constructions that were erected in Ahvaz, Shushtar, and the north of Andimeshk. ===The Arab invasion of Khuzestan=== The Arab invasion of Khuzestan took place in 639 CE under the command of Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari who drove the Persian ''Hormozan'' out of Ahvaz. Hormozan fled to Shushtar, where his forces were besieged by Abu Musa for 18 months. Shushtar finally fell in 642 CE to Abu Musa's army, followed by Susa, Jondishapoor, and many other districts along the Tigris. The battle of Nehavand finally secured Khuzestan for the Muslim armies. (Encyclopedia Iranica, p206). The Arab settlements by military garrisons in southern Iran was soon followed by other types of colonization. Some Arab families, for example, took the opportunity to gain control of private estates. (Encyclopedia Iranica, p212). Like the rest of Iran, the Arab invasion thus brought Khuzestan under occupation of the Arabs of the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates, until Ya'qub bin Laith as-Saffar, from eastern Iran, raised the flag of independence once more, and ultimately regained control over Khuzestan, among other parts of Iran, founding the short-lived Saffarid dynasty. From that point on, Iranian Persian Kings would continue to rule the region in succession as an important part of Iran. In the latter part of the 16th century, the ''Bani Kaab'', from Kuwait, settled in Khuzestan. (see J.R. Perry, "The Banu Ka'b: An Amphibious Brigand State in Khuzestan", ''Le Monde Iranien et L'Islam I'', 1971, p133) And during the succeeding centuries, many more Arab tribes moved from southern Iraq to Khuzestan, and as a result, Khuzestan became "extensively Arabized". (Encyclopedia Iranica, p216). According to C.E. Bosworth in the ''Encyclopedia Iranica'', under the Qajar dynasty ''"... the province was known, as in Safavid times, as Arabistan, and during the Qajar period was administratively a governor-generalate."'' In the mid 1800s Britain initiated a war with Iran in a failed attempt to conquer Khuzestan. Having lost, the British continued in their attempts to wrest control of the province by supporting a number of foreign Arab tribes that had invaded Iran. The last remnants of these tribes (ruled over by Sheikh Khaz'al, of Kuwaiti origin) were finally defeated in 1925 by Reza Shah. In the past eighty years, except during the Iran-Iraq war, the province of Khuzestan thrived and prospered and today accounts for one of the regions in Iran that holds an economic and defensive strategic position. The existence of prominent scientific and cultural centers such as Academy_of_Gundishapur which gathered distiguished medical scientists from Egypt, Greece, India, and Rome, shows the importance and prosperity of this region during ancient times. The Academy_of_Gundishapur was founded by the order of Shapur_I_of_Persia (241-271 CE). It was repaired and restored by Shapur II of Persia (a.k.a. ''Zol-Aktaf'': "The Possessor of Shoulder Blades") and was completed and expanded during the reign of Anushirvan. ===The Iran-Iraq war=== Being on the border with Iraq, Khuzestan suffered the heaviest damage of all Iranian provinces during the Iran-Iraq war. What used to be Iran's largest refinery at Abadan was destroyed, never to fully recover. Many of the famous ''nakhlestans'' were annihilated, cities were destroyed, historical sites were demolished, and half the province went under the boots of Saddam's invading army. This created a mass exodus into provinces that did not have the logistical capability of taking in such a large number of refugees. However, by 1982, Iranian forces managed to push Saddam's forces back into Iraq. The battle of "''the Liberation of Khorramshahr''" (one of Khuzestan's largest cities and the most important Iranian port prior to the war) was a turning point in the war, and is officially celebrated every year in Iran. ===Struggle over the province=== The first person to launch secessionist unrests in Khuzestan was Sheikh Khaz'al, who rose to power in 1897 and had originally been supported by the British colonialists. He was finally arrested in 1925 by Reza Shah and the area of Khuzestan he had dominated returned to the province. Domination of Khuzestan was also Saddam Hussein's primary strategic objective that launched the Iran-Iraq war, which forced thousands of Iranians to flee the province. The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran does not conduct any official ethnic census in Iran, thus it is difficult to determine the exact demographics. Beginning in the early nineties, many ethnic Persian Khuzestanis began returning to the province, a trend which continues to this day as the major urban centres are being rebuilt and restored. Restoration has been slow due to neglect by the regime of the Islamic Republic. The city of Khorramshahr was almost completely decimated as a result of Saddam's scorched earth policy. Fortunately, Iranian forces were able to prevent the Iraqis from attempting to spread the execution of this policy to other major urban centres. The Iranian Embassy Siege of 1980 was a terrorist siege of the Iranian Embassy in London initiated by Arab separatists, backed by Saddam Hussein. Initially it emerged the terrorists wanted autonomy for Khuzestan; later they demanded the release of 91 of their comrades held in Iranian jails. Arab separatists supported Saddam's forces in attacking both Persian and Arab Iranian soldiers and civilians, in what could be considered an attempt at an ethnic cleansing of the Iranian population, as the majority of the Arab Khuzestani population were loyal to Iran and fought alongside other Iranians against Saddam. After the withdrawal of Iraqi forces towards the end of the war, the remainder of these Arab separatists fled to Iraq, though Saddam continued to entertain the notion of a potential future invasion of Khuzestan for many years afterwards. ==Economy== [[Image:Karun3-dam.jpg|thumb|right|The government of Iran is spending large amounts of money in Khuzestan province. The massive Karun-3 dam, was inaugurated recently as part of a drive to boost Iran's growing energy demands.]] Khuzestan is the major oil-producing region of Iran, and as such is the wealthiest province in Iran, though it is claimed that this wealth does not benefit the average citizen. The government of Iran claims the province to rank third among Iran's provinces in GDP. [http://www.ostan-kz.ir/papercutdetail_afa_pi_191.html source (in Persian)] ===Shipping=== Karun river is the only river in Iran capable of sailing. The British, up until recent decades, after the discovery by Sir Henry Layard, transported their merchandise via Karun's waterways, passing through Ahvaz all the way up to Masjed Soleiman, the site of their first oil wells in the Naftoon oil field. Karun is capable of the sailing of fairly large ships as far up as Shushtar. Karkheh, Jarrahi, Arvand, Handian, Shavoor, Bahmanshir (Bahman-Ardeshir), Maroon-Alaa', Dez, and many other rivers and water sources in the form of ''Khurs'', lagoons, ponds, and marshes demonstrate the vastness of water resourses in this region, and are the main reason for the variety of agricultural products developed in the area. ===Agriculture=== The abundance of water and fertility of soil have transformed this region into a rich and well-endowed land. The variety of agricultural products such as wheat, barley, oily seeds, rice, eucalyptus, medical herbs; the existence of many palm and citrus farms; having mountains suitable for raising olives, and of course sugar cane - from which Khuzestan takes its name - all show the great potential of this fertile plain. The abundance of water supplies, rivers, and dams, also have an influence on the fishery industries, which are prevalent in the area. ===Industry=== [[Image:Fulad-ahvaz.jpg|thumb|right|Iran has some major industrial facilities located in Ahvaz. The ''Fulad-e-Ahvaz'' steel facility is one of them.]] The Karun 3 and 4, and Karkheh Dam, as well as the petroleum reserves provide Iran with national sources of revenue and energy. The petrochemical and steel industries, pipe making, the power stations that feed the national electricity grid, the chemical plants, and the large refineries are some of Iran's major industrial facilities. The province is also home to Yadavaran Field, a major oil field. ==Universities== *# Khorramshahr University of Nautical Sciences and Technologies *# [http://www.ajums.ac.ir/ Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences] *# [http://www.put.ac.ir/ Petroleum University of Technology] *# [http://www.cua.ac.ir/ Shahid Chamran University-Ahvaz] *# [http://www.nbd.ac.ir/ Shahid Chamran University-Dezful] *# Islamic Azad University of Abadan *# Islamic Azad University of Omidiyeh *# Islamic Azad University of Ahvaz *# Islamic Azad University of Behbahan *# Islamic Azad University of Izeh ==Attractions of Khuzestan== Iran's National Heritage Organization lists 140 sites of Historical and Cultural significance in Khuzestan, reflecting the fact that the province was once the seat of Iran's most ancient empire. Some of the more popular sites of attraction include: [[Image:Metallic Parthian.jpg|right|frame|The ''Parthian Prince'', found in Khuzestan circa 100 CE, is kept at The National Museum of Iran, Tehran.]] *Choqa Zanbil: The seat of the Elamite Empire, this ziggurat is a magnificent five-story temple that is one of the greatest ancient monuments in the Middle-East today. The monolith, with its labyrinthine walls made of thousads of large bricks with Elamite inscription, manifest the sheer antiquity of the shrine. The temple was religiously sacred and built in the honor of Inshushinak, the protector deity of the city of Susa. *''Shush-Daniel'': Burial site of the Jewish prophet Daniel, who was revered by Cyrus The Great. He is said to have died in Susa on his way to Jerusalem upon the order of Darius. The grave of Ya'qub bin Laith as-Saffar, who rose against the oppression of the Umayyad Caliphate, is also located nearby. *Dezful (''Dezh-pol''), whose name is taken from a bridge (''pol'') over Dez river having 12 spans built by the order of Shapur I of Persia. This is the same bridge that was called "Andamesh Bridge" by historians such as Istakhri who says the city of Andimeshk takes its name from this bridge. Muqaddasi called it "The City of the Bridge." *Shushtar, one of the oldest fortress cities in Iran, known as the "City of Forty Elders" in local dialect. The Friday Mosque of Shushtar was built by the Abbasids. The mosque, which features "Roman" arches, has 54 pillars and balconies. *Izeh, or ''Izaj'', was one of the main targets of the invading Islamic army in their conquest of Persia. ''Kharezad Bridge'', one of the strangest bridges of the world, is situated in this city and was named after Ardeshir Babakan's mother. It is built over casted pillars of lead each 104 meters high. Ibn Battuta, who visited the city in the 14th century, refers to many monasteries, caravanserais, aqueducts, schools, and fortresses in the town. The brass statue of ''The Parthian Man'', kept at the National Museum of Iran, is from here. *Masjed Soleiman, another ancient town, has ancient fire alters and temples such as ''Sar-masjed'' and ''Bard-neshondeh''. It is also the winter's resting area of the Bakhtiari tribe, and where William Knox D'Arcy dug Iran's first oil well. *Abadan is said to be where the tomb of Elias, the long lived Hebrews prophet is. *''Iwan of Hermes'', and ''Iwan of Karkheh'', two enigmatic ruins north of Susa. ==See also== *Ahvaz *Susa *Choqa Zanbil *Iran-Iraq war *Ethnic politics of Khuzestan *Islamic conquest of Iran ==External links== *[http://www.hafttappeh.ir/ Haft Tappe archeological site in Khuzestan] *[http://www.choghazanbil.ir/ Choqa Zanbil Ziggurat Official website] *[http://www.ostan-kz.ir/ Official website of Khuzestan Governorship] *[http://www.ayapir.com/ Ayapir archeological site] *[http://www.bakhtiaritribe.net/khuzestan.html The History of Khuzestan according to Bakhtiari tribes of Khuzestan] *[http://www.khouz.medu.ir/ Khuzestan Province Department of Education] (in Persian) *[http://www.iranonline.com/iran/khuzestan/images/ Images of Khuzestan] Provinces of Iran fa:استان خوزستان
==neutrality?== This article seems to be written from a too pro-iran and anti-arab stance. I think it needs neutralization. : Can you mention some facts missing or is it just feeling? User:Pavel Vozenilek 17:21, 19 Apr 2005 (UTC) What's missing are periods of Babylonian, Assyrian, Greek, Roman, Arabic, Ottoman, and British rule. Also missing are the Kabide Emirate and the former name of the province, Arabistan. As are the Arab-speaking population of the province, who may be a majority (a Khuzestani Arab editor, Ahwaz, estimates that somewhere between 30-60% of the population is Arabic-speaking). Also missing is a link to the new article, Ethnic conflict in Khuzestan. The Iranian editors Vereshk and Southern Comfort are extremely active in this article, also in the Ahvaz, Iran-Iraq war, and Ethnic conflict in Khuzestan articles, trying to ensure that Wikipedia contains nothing that challenges their POV. Yes, I'm cranky. I don't like being accused of being an Arab nationalist (or a Bengali!) when I try to bring back some balance. User:Zora 09:12, 5 May 2005 (UTC)
:You are simply the most ignorant user I have ever come across on Wikipedia. It's absurd. I'm tired of responding to your racist ignorance, but I won't let you continue vandalising these pages. Go read the history books for yourself and stop relying on the racist propaganda of pan-Arabist websites. You make a lot of noise Zora, but in the end you cannot back up your claims or prove your revisionist history. User:SouthernComfort 11:19, 5 May 2005 (UTC)
#The British? Actually, I also have access to extensive documentation about the British colonial rule, and how they instigated Arab secessionism in Khuzestan to protect their national oil interests. Great Britain has attempted to separate Khuzestan from Iran on 7 different campaigns during the past 300 years.[http://www.farhangiran.com/pdf/khoozestan+manouchehr%20yazdi.pdf (for our Farsi readers)] #"Kabide Emirate"? I can also add an entire section about how the Kabide tribe emigrated to Khuzestan from Kuwait during the Zand Dynasty, and how Sheikh Khaz'al (who came from this tribe) first came up with the name "Arabistan". There's even a Goddamn district named after him and his family in Kuwait ("Khaz'aliyah"). The more Pan-Arab revisionists like Zora insist on this page being "Persian nationalist", the more we will throw in documentation illustrating the utter fallacy of their claims. (while making the page even more accurate) No really, did you think it was that easy to claim Susa as Arab? We lost 1 million lives in a fuckin war against Saddam who made the very exact claims.--User:Zereshk 17:43, 5 May 2005 (UTC) :Not to mention the fact that she is simply throwing around names of other empires like the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Ottomans, ad nauseum. She simply has no education in Iranian history and doesn't seem to realise that Khuzestan has always been part of Iran as a nation. Next she will be claiming that Fars, Mazandaran, Gilan, and all the other 30 provinces have never been part of Iran. The whole thing with the Ottomons is just weird - last time I checked the Turks never ruled over any part of Iran. And as I have stated to her before, the British never ruled over Khuzestan - they did, however, try on several occasions to conquer the province, without any luck. It's funny you mention Saddam, because the butcher's uncle did promote this same sort of revisionist and racist propaganda against not only Persians, but also against Kurds and Jews. :It is clear to me that she is a hateful person with a grudge against Iranians, Shi'a, and who knows what other people. The historical facts have been presented, they are able to be verified, there are more than enough references on these subjects. When faced with all these facts, which can be referenced in any decent library, and yet she continues to attack these very same facts as being 'Persian nationalist.' Notice she is the only one making so much noise concerning this matter? This whole 'thing' of hers is just purely absurd. I've never seen such an extreme level of ignorance in all of my life. How many times will we have to deal with this insanity? User:SouthernComfort 18:38, 5 May 2005 (UTC) == Politeness, please == Don't start a war between you. Discuss politely and try to get a solution to your argument. --User:Imaglang 14:34, 12 May 2005 (UTC) :I agree with you, however I think you may also agree that it is extremely difficult and frustrating (and ultimately pointless) to debate with someone (Zora, in this case) who consistently denies established history and insists on pushing what is undeniably a 'pan-Arabist' agenda promoted by a fringe anti-Iranian political group which she picked up from their website. The revisionism (and blatant denial of established history) that she has attempted to promote is not accepted at all by any academic or scholarly source and I invite you, as a third-party, to research this for yourself. As far as I'm concerned the issue is closed as I do not have the time nor the inclination to entertain her denial of history in the name of furthering of a POV political agenda, which I personally and sincerely find extremely offensive. User:SouthernComfort 23:22, 12 May 2005 (UTC) ::Southern Comfort: I have tried to give a neutral account of Arab heritage in Khuzestan on the "ethnic conflict in Khuzestan" section and you and another have denied there is any Arab heritage (a revisionist standpoint), insisted that I was anti-Iranian (which I am absolutely not), deleted parts of what I wrote that did not conform to you beliefs and accused me of lying. There is absolutely no way anyone can write about the racism, forced migration, unequal access to education, healthcare and media or any other aspects of Persianisation apartheid enforced on the Ahwazi Arabs by the regime in Tehran. I think that sometimes you act as an apologist for these mullahs. No-one else is allowed to write on Iran but you and your friends.--User:Ahwaz 23:51, 12 May 2005 (UTC) :::I did not delete anything that you contributed, so please do not start making things up. You did not even add anything related to the so-called 'Arab heritage,' instead focusing your efforts on these fringe (yes, fringe - find me some evidence that any Iranian Arabs support these groups) political groups, and I did not delete that section, and instead simply pointed out that the views of these groups adheres to historical revisionism and that it is uncertain whether Iranian Arabs support these groups or not. You call me an apologist for the mullahs? Who the hell do you think you are? My family is from Khuzestan, and I still have many relatives there, most of whom have suffered through not only the barbaric atrocities of Saddam's invasion, but also through the fact that the regime has almost totally ignored the restoration of Khuzestan - which has affected EVERYONE, not just the Arab minority or any other minority. The whole province has remained stagnant since the end of the war thanks to the regime. We've gone over all this again and again and again. As to your other comments, there is nothing in these pages that is historically inaccurate or false. Khuzestan has always been a part of Iran, and it's dominant heritage has always been Iranian throughout history. I challenge anyone to prove otherwise. User:SouthernComfort 01:06, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ::::Southern Comfort: You are wrong on this. You are wrong that Arabs are a minority of just 500,000, when in fact there are 4.5 million Arabs in Iran, most of them in Khuzestan. I have shown you a document to prove this, but you still believe the Mullahs' lies. Arabs suffered the most from the Iran-Iraq War. It was Ahwazi Arab children who were forced to walk to their deaths in "human wave" attacks in the war, with the Persian mullahs promising them "paradise" for their martyrdom. It was Ahwazi Arab girls who were employed to carry out mine clearance. It was cities with Ahwazi Arab majorities - Khorramshahr, Abadan, Susa, Ahwaz City, Khafajieg, Shadegan, Susangard - that were worst affected. Ahwazi Arabs were the human shield in the war between two tyrannies. Only 10-20 per cent of Arab towns have been rebuilt since 1988, while the government is busy building new towns for "loyal" non-Arabs it is bringing into the province to change its ethnic make-up. The regime is planning to divert rivers in Khuzestan, such as the Karoon, to supply cities such as Kerman and deny Arabs access to vital water sources. The current regime, like the Pahlavis, is based on ethnic supremacy. The difference between the Pahlavis and the Ayatollahs is that the latter justify their racism through religion. The denial of Iran's multi-ethnic identity and the assumption that there is only one Persian identity is an aspect of this racial supremacy that has surfaced more than once on Wikipedia.--User:Ahwaz 11:58, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :::::Firstly, my opinion that Arabs are a minority in Khuzestan is just that - an opinion, and we agreed to avoid any mention of the current ethnic proportion on these pages. Why do you keep bringing up dead issues? As for your other statements, they are extremely POV and cannot be backed up. Like I said, EVERYONE suffered through the war and under this regime - regardless of their ethnicity. To say that one group suffered more than the other is POV. The way you talk, you make it seem like Arabs are the only people who exist in Khuzestan and are the only ones having a hard time, which is totally false. By the way, have you ever considered that a lot of the 'non-Arabs' who are moving to Khuzestan are actually Persian Khuzestanis returning to the province after all these years? Anyway, this discussion has nothing to do with the fact that you and Zora have declared your intentions to rewrite what already are NPOV and factually accurate articles (Khuzestan and Ahvaz). User:SouthernComfort 15:50, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ::::::Of course my statements can be backed up. They are backed up by every human rights organisation and independent journalist who has visited Khuzestan and covered the Iran-Iraq War. Of course the Ahwazi Arabs suffered more from war than others. The war was largely fought in Khuzestan, where the Arabs are the largest ethnic group. Anyway, this is not simply a matter of factual accuracy, but putting forward the debates surrounding ethnicity and heritage in Khuzestan. You refuse to even consider publishing alternative viewpoints, unless they are accompanied by a refutation that they are make-believe. Is this not POV? Anyway, where have I declared my intention to rewrite articles? I just want to expand articles so they have some balance. I don't want to delete anything. You are the one who is rewriting and deleting content, not me. Show me one example of where I have done anything like rewriting content. I just want balance, that's all.--User:Ahwaz 17:38, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ---- We didn't agree. You kept deleting any discussion of population estimates, SC, and we got tired of putting up material that was excised as soon as put up. Neither Ahwaz nor I particularly want to play revert war. We'd just like you to allow other viewpoints to be represented! You don't seem to get the idea of NPOV. You think it means "true". It doesn't. It means taking a neutral attitude as to existing controversies. If A and B believe in diametrically opposite POVs, the article should not take sides with A or B. It should say, A believes that, and present an accurate summary of the case, and then B believes that, and present an accurate summary of the case. Clearly, there are controversies here. There is ample evidence of ethnic unrest, discord, separatism, etc. I have also put up links to material discussing current historical trends questioning nationalist history. All that should be presented -- not as the truth, but as existing POVs. Ahwaz and I don't want to erase your views, we want them represented. If all views get an adequate presentation, if there are enough links to websites and books, then the reader can ponder the arguments and make up his or her own mind. It is NOT the purpose of a Wikipedia article to decide for the reader, to tell him/her what is the "truth". User:Zora 16:05, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ==Zora's intentions: sneaky vandalism== I urge all third-parties to see [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Ahwaz Ahwaz's talk page] and Zora's comments there. These articles, despite being historically accurate and using information from academic sources, have consistently been undermined by User:Zora. Other users and I have done our best to present the established, accepted history of Khuzestan and Ahvaz in the main articles, while Zora has attempted to undermine those efforts by flagrantly deleting accepted data by accusing us of 'Persian nationalism.' Her ideas concerning Khuzestan's heritage and history come from a number of fringe anti-Iranian 'Ahwazi' political groups - the views of which are NOT accepted by any academic or scholarly source. She considers any attempt to avoid historical speculation and revisionism on these pages to be 'censorship.' I disagree. I believe revisionism and denial of established history has no place in these main articles. If she wants to create separate articles that deal with revisionist history, then that's something. This sort of behaviour on Zora's part would never be tolerated in any other location articles that have a great many contributors who are educated in the subject. Zora appears to now have gone to her admin friends in attempt to bully us into submission to her revisionist views, and has openly declared that she will rewrite these articles to fit her conception of NPOV - which apparently requires that speculation and historical denial be entertained in the main articles. Never mind the fact that many hours of hard work and research went into these articles - now she has declared that she wants to not only delete our edits out of spite, but also to promote her own revisionist agenda. Quite frankly I wish there were more knowledgeable editors here so that people like Zora cannot get away with their nonsense. There is established and accepted history and then there is historical revisionism/denial. She has so far proven herself to belong to the latter group. As I said, this sort of behaviour would never be tolerated in any other main articles, and it should not be tolerated here. The way she is going about things, this will never end, and I have all the time and patience in the world to ensure that the facts remain intact within these articles. User:SouthernComfort 16:09, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :You are the bully here. You are imposing your version of truth and denying the fact that there is an academic debate about Khuzestan's history and ethnicity. So what if you think something is revisionist? Who are you to make this judgement? Unless these intellectual debates are reflected in Wikipedia without accusations of "revisionism", there is no chance that these entries can be regarded as NPOV.--User:Ahwaz 17:42, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :: Southern Comfort wrote: "There is established and accepted history and then there is historical revisionism/denial." I don't think you understand how history is DONE if you think that historians agree on what's ''true'' and then it is true forever more, amen. All history is interpretation; it isn't cut and dried. Historians are squabbling all the time about what the facts are and how they should be interpreted. I know this; I've done actual historical research, put in my time in dusty archives, contributed to published work (as a research assistant), and read a fair bit of historical debate. These debates can be rancorous, but the participants at least put on a mask of collegiality and mutual respect. (Though anyone with an experience of academe knows just how venomous someone can sound when saying "my esteemed colleague".)
Some theories are generally believed to be fringe, or eccentric, and if they are, they disappear soon enough. However, sometimes, in science or history, views that seemed nutso have been proved right (Wegener's theory of continental drift). That's one reason why the Wikipedia NPOV stance is useful; it allows for a presentation of multiple theories, some more received than others, and can be a starting point for real research on the topic.
SC, your insistence that there is only one view that is ''true'', and it's yours, is actually contrary to the way history is done. User:Zora 18:19, 13 May 2005 (UTC)
:These are not 'my' views, but the views presented by historians. The views you have presented came from these fringe 'Ahwazi' groups that are promulgated on their websites. Wikipedia is not a place for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_original_research 'original research'] - I believe there is a 'policy' (I'm not sure what the official term is here) article concerning this. If you want to go against the status quo, that's fine, but those views are revisionist any way you look at them, since they have never even been entertained by any academics, and don't belong in the main articles. You accuse me of 'Persian nationalism' and yet I have not linked to any nationalist websites nor have I attempted to promote a political agenda, but you have linked to the Ahwazi groups (in the 'Ethnic conflict' article which is fine), and attempted to present their revisionist views in the main 'Ahvaz' article, which is not alright. Like I said, Wikipedia is supposed to be an encyclopedia and not a forum for original research or revisionist theories, which from what I understand do not belong in the main articles but rather in separate articles dealing with those specific subjects.
:I believe my arguments to be rational and reasonable since I am adhering to what has been presented by the majority of historians and academics. But you dispute their views. That's fine, I have no problem with that. But to alter the main articles to include the revisionist views of a fringe minority (and whose views are probably not even accepted by most Iranian Arabs) is, IMHO, not right and an incorrect way of going about doing things. As I've said, this sort of behaviour would not be tolerated in any other major article which has a significant number of contributors and admins watching the page.
:As I've related, you can accuse me all you want of 'Persian nationalism' but none of my contributions (or Zereshk's, for that matter) have involved original research, and the revisionist views you want to present would constitute original research, whether your own or from these groups. There is a status quo and a majority consensus amongst academics and historians, and it is the established historical perspective which is to be found in the books that is found here. You're not going to find any support for 'Ahwazi' claims in any history books. User:SouthernComfort 19:16, 13 May 2005 (UTC)
:As per Zereshk's original [http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Ahvaz suggestion] at the top of Talk:Ahvaz, feel free to contribute to [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Al-Ahwazi_separatism_debate&action=edit The Al-Ahwazi separatism debate] if you insist on promoting these revisionist views, rather than attempting to alter the established history presented in these main articles. I think that's reasonable enough. User:SouthernComfort 19:40, 13 May 2005 (UTC)
No, it's not reasonable. You can't censor other POVs. User:Zora 19:59, 13 May 2005 (UTC)
:That's not a proper response. If you attempt to deface these pages with your historical revisionism, you will be violating Wikipedia policy since you are attempting to introduce original research based upon blatant historical revisionism and denial. Invite as many admins here as you possibly can, and I will do the same. I believe everyone will be able to see for themselves that you are waging a war in the name of political propaganda (and I have no idea why you would possibly want to do so). Your inability to communicate and mount a proper, reasonable response based on factual history has been evident throughout, with your reliance upon political propaganda websites, and all you can do is accuse me of 'Persian nationalism' and 'censorship.' I will no longer tolerate this nonsense, and as far as I'm concerned, this discussion is over. User:SouthernComfort 20:56, 13 May 2005 (UTC)
== NPOV tag ==
The only fact here's not discussed it's that there's a neutrality dispute between Zora and SouthernComfort. Thus, I have added the . User:Zora 05:32, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
:And exactly what, pray tell, does any of this have to do with the history of Khuzestan exactly? User:SouthernComfort 06:33, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
:: You are writing nationalist history. That is not the only way to do history. There are Iranians who say so. User:Zora 07:01, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
:Zora, you just vandalised the Ahvaz article by deleting the whole section and rewriting it to basically the same thing as was presented before. Also the bit about 'Ahwazi separatists' is POV in that article, as well as mention of 'forced Persianisation.' That's why Ethnic conflict in Khuzestan exists. User:SouthernComfort 06:41, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
:: Editing is not vandalism. Nor it is wrong to mention an alternate theory of the name's origin in the etymology section. I'm willing to present both theories; that's NPOV. Your insistence that one theory be suppressed, because you don't like it, is contrary to NPOV.
:: I edited the section drastically because it was too long and confusing, and way out of balance with the rest of the article. I just looked at it again and it still seems clunky. We've given the history twice, which doesn't seem necessary. I'll go at it again. User:Zora 07:01, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
:::"... the rude tribes of the Iranian plateau"? That's what you added to the Ancient History section. So much for NPOV. What the hell was up with that anyway? The rest that you added to that section is already contained in the Elamite Empire article. The Ancient History section of Ahvaz should only contain information pertinent to that city. I would not object to shortening the etymology section of Ahvaz, since it is already given treatment in the main Khuzestan article - or simply removing the section altogether if it bothers you that much, again, since it is already given treatment in the main article. I do object to the mention of 'Ahwazi separatists.' User:SouthernComfort 07:11, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
:::The way Ahvaz looks now with your recent edits, we might as well just get rid of the history section completely, as well as any mention of etymology. I'll have to get to this again later. User:SouthernComfort 07:16, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
I can list 16 other Iranian historians that say the version that me and SouthernComfort put up is the standard accepted History. zora cannot be allowed to revise history. Revising history should be a crime.--User:Zereshk 01:51, 17 May 2005 (UTC)
==Ethnic: conflict vs tension vs unrest vs ...==
I feel that the 'ethnic conflict' in Ethnic conflict in Khuzestan is too strong, and it is somewhat misleading considering the conflict happens to be with the central government (and it's policies since the Pahlavi era), rather than with other ethnic groups. When I think about it, it's actually very misleading. Iran is not Yugoslavia, nor do Iranian Arabs have any conflicts with Lurs, Bakhtiaris, Behbahanis, Shushtaris, etc. As such, I propose the article be renamed. Any suggestions? User:SouthernComfort 12:07, 17 May 2005 (UTC)
:I agree that the problems relating to ethnicity in Khuzestan are not communal, as they are in Pakistan or India, and that they are about the grievances of an ethnic minority towards the central government. Also, the Arabs are not engaged in conflict but a civil rights movement equivalent to the American blacks. Would anyone term Martin Luther King a leader of an ethnic conflict or someone struggling for equality of races?
:However, I would not want a change of name that would result in the loss of information on the economic and political marginalisation of Arabs in Khuzestan. We have agreed that such issues - autonomy, economic equality, land confiscations, etc - should not feature in the Khuzestan and Ahvaz entries and that there should be an entry covering them. I don't want to see the work that has been put into the Ethnic conflict in Khuzestan entry deleted because it is viewed as too "political".--User:Ahwaz 21:28, 17 May 2005 (UTC)
::I think the article is actually very neutral and cannot be construed as being 'political' at all since there is no endorsement of any political groups. The only issue is the term 'conflict' in the title. Ethnic minorities in Iran also needs to be greatly expanded to include issues related to tribal groups (of which it must be said that there is much ignorance about) and also the historical background of foreign agitation of minorities (including Kurds and Azeris) which ultimately resulted in separatist movements and the subsequent Pahlavi imposition of Western ideas of the 'nation-state' (as opposed to Iranian concepts of nationhood which are distinct to our country) upon Iran. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done and I'm currently focusing my efforts in this area. User:SouthernComfort 23:11, 17 May 2005 (UTC)
::Also, in regards to autonomy, all tribal groups were autonomous, since obviously most of them were nomadic and could not be controlled by any central authority, nor were they settled in just one particular area. So this is different from the modern concept of provincial autonomy (which would require inclusiveness of all groups in that particular area), and also separate from cultural autonomy (i.e. the right of groups to retain their lingustic, religious, and cultural heritage which are supposed to be guaranteed by the constitution). User:SouthernComfort 23:22, 17 May 2005 (UTC)
Changing the title would be an attempt to whitewash the issue. If there are riots, if there are separatist groups, there is conflict. Conflict ''can'' be minor or major, sporadic or widespread. If you feel that the conflicts are minor and isolated, that should be one of the POVs in the article. Also, ethnic conflict in X is a commonly-used Wikipedia title format. User:Zora 01:25, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
:Nobody is trying to 'whitewash' anything. As both Ahwaz and I have pointed out, this is a civil rights issue between minority groups and the central government, not an 'ethnic conflict' between various groups. The riots that have occurred were against the central government, not unlike the recent student protests against the regime in 1999 and 2002 (and which continue to occur from time to time on a smaller scale). The so-called 'conflicts' in question are not minor or isolated, but part of a larger issue pertaining to the rights of indigenous groups to retain their identity and heritage in the face of cultural and linguistic assimilation imposed upon them by the regime (many of the regime's leaders aren't even ethnic Persians - the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, for example, is of Azeri descent and Head of the Judiciary Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi is a native Arabic-speaker, of Persian Arab (Iraqi) background), not by the Persian majority (most of whom, like most of the rest of the population, were born after the revolution and have no political power). User:SouthernComfort 02:16, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
The central government, and the "establishment", is primarily composed of ethnic Persians. A few people here or there doesn't change that, any more than Condoleeza Rice means that there's no ethnic conflict in the U.S. If most people in the government were Azeri, don't you think that Azeri would be the national language?
Many theorists of nationalism differentiate between civic nationalism and ethnic nationalism. Civic nationalism bases community on shared ideals, and allows for multi-culturalism. Ethnic nationalism stresses shared bonds of language and culture. Seems to me that of late, Iranian nationalism tilts heavily towards the "ethnic", with Persian language and culture being seen as the unifying element of the state. This means strained relations with groups who see their language and culture as devalued. (Based on what I've been reading, different versions of Iranian nationalism were current at different times; it's not a monolith.) User:Zora 07:26, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
:What are you talking about? This is where your severe lack of education in this subject is most revealing. Two of the most important Iranian dynasties have been 100% Azeri - the Safavids and the Qajars. And yet they never imposed the Azeri-Turkish language on anyone. Your argument is baseless. Azeris are almost a majority in Iran today and they form a significant percentage of Tehran's overall population (ask anyone from Tehran and they will tell you that just about every single grocery store is run by Azeris, to cite a minor example). Azeris are a majority in Iran's army as well as a dominant element in the national police force. I could go on and on. They are the second largest ethnic group after Persians and are more linguistically amd culturally homogenous. And yet they have never attempted to impose their language or culture on anyone. 'A few people here or there'? Azeris in high positions are far, far more than a few people. After all, the highest and most powerful position in the regime is held by an Azeri. Though the regime is a very ethnically diverse organization, if one wanted to speculate as to which group is the most politically dominant, it would be the Azeris, not the Persians. But wait a minute - according to your thesis, if Azeris dominate the government, then every single Persian would be speaking Turkish! And yet somehow Persian remains the dominant language of the land.
:There has never been any 'ethnic conflict' between Azeris and Persians, nor between any other Iranian groups. You are obsessed with this idea of 'conflict' (like many other Westerners who are obsessed with the idea of racial and ethnic conflict) but of all Iran's problems, this is not one of them. Iran is not the West, and it's certainly not the East either. Zereshk is correct. You don't know our country and considering your political opinions and orientation, you never will. User:SouthernComfort 09:39, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
::It might interest you to note that the letter written by Abtahi, which caused the riots in April, outlined a plan to move Arabs from Khuzestan and move Azeris into the province in order to change the ethnic mix. Most Azeris don't have a grievance because they are considered to be loyal by the regime and benefit from its patronage. They are more integrated into Iranian society, perhaps because their main population concentrations are close to Tehran. The problems with ethnic unrest are occurring on the country's periphery: Kurdistan, Khuzestan, Baluchistan. As has been stated, there is no conflict between ethnic groups. Iran is not going to Balkanise and many opposition groups representing minorities have begun to realise that they are not going to achieve anything through secession. That's why earlier this year formerly irredentist groups formed the Congreh Meliathai-e-Iran-e-Federal (Congress of Iranian Nationalities for a Federal Iran), which includes the leading Kurdish, Ahwazi, Balochi, Azeri and Turkmen parties and recognises the need for national unity and territorial integrity. The Congress' manifesto states: "we desire a federal system of government, on the basis of national ethnicity and geography, in a united and an integral Iran." If there was conflict between ethnic groups, these groups would not have been able to converge and put forward an agreed manifesto. Instead, there is an overall desire for ethnic groups to have equality not separatism, although separatist sentiment does exist.--User:Ahwaz 10:18, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
:::Yes, I read the letter. It wouldn't surprise me if it turned out to be true (i.e. not a hoax), as nothing that this joke of a regime does surprises me. After all, Rafsanjani is about to become the next president. If you ask me though, Iranian Arabs have no real representation, within Iran or without. These self-styled Ahwazi groups in the West are just like any exile Iranian opposition group - empty rhetoric and factionalist tendencies, each with their own skewed version of history. Khuzestan is a special case compared to all the other provinces due to it's diversity. Khuzestanis need a united front, taking into account both native Arab and Persian (Lurs, Bakhtiaris, Shushtaris, etc) groups in order to protect the province's heritage and legacy. That's why I don't like these Ahwazi groups, nor I do like any of the Persian nationalist groups - all of them ignore the indigenous Persian culture of Khuzestan. When I visit Khuzestan it's different, people there are basically together in trying to improve the situation in spite of the regime, especially in Khorramshahr and Abadan. The problem is that the post-war political and economic elite of Khuzestan are not even native to the province and have no interest in preserving Khuzestani culture, and in the diaspora most Khuzestanis seem to be completely apathetic and have given up on doing anything. This is contrary to the spirit of Khuzestan, which has a hot-blooded, hot-tempered southern culture. User:SouthernComfort 11:39, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
:::Also, interestingly enough, Bahraini Khuzestanis (Arab/Persian), and even Khaz'als descendants (also Arab/Persian) are ignored by everyone, as they do not fit conveniently into the standard categories, except only as Khuzestanis. User:SouthernComfort 12:02, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
::::I don't think the Ahwazi Arab groups that have formed recently can be seen as being in the same mould as the Ba'athist-influenced separatists that emerged in the Iran-Iraq War, whose territorial claims were blatantly absurd to the point of surreal. The Democratic Solidarity Party of Ahwaz and the Ahwaz Human Rights Organisation are both groups seeking Arab political integration and economic equality in Iran and appear to be led by a younger group of exiled intellectuals - none of them have touched an AK47 in their lives. I've met some of them and they are distinctly more pragmatic and liberal than the old pan-Arab nationalists. They also seem to have greater lines of communication with Khuzestan, making good use of email and faxes, and they have some degree of support from within the province.
::::I think the fall of Saddam has benefitted the Arabs of Khuzestan as it forces them to engage with Iranian society in order to maintain their relevance, instead of falling back on foreign funding. They also realise that in order to win international acceptance, they have to respect Iran's territorial integrity. Hence, the emphasis on their status as a minority group, rather than a nation. There is also a repudiation of armed resistance and a distancing from the NCRI and the other Rajavi-led groups. I believe the ethnic Persian dominated exiled Iranian opposition is living in the past if it thinks that the new generation of Khuzestani/Ahwazi Arabs are just acolytes of the Ba'athists or are conducting operations under the directions of shady men in Tikrit or the even shadier men in Washington. The monarchists seem to be the ones most keen on resurrecting ethnic rivalries and I have seen a lot of anti-Arab racism from these types - perhaps more than from Tehran itself.--User:Ahwaz 13:39, 18 May 2005 (UTC)
:::::I'm not saying all the Ahwazi groups in exile were (or are) connected to the Baathists or Nasserite pan-Arabist groups, but IMHO they are 'alien' to the Arabs of Khuzestan. I've just never seen any sympathy for such groups in Khuzestan. Most of my Arab friends are from Khorramshahr/Muhammerah, Abadan, and Ahvaz, and the main complaints I hear from them is that they want Khuzestan to have two official languages, both Arabic and Persian, and of course all the other complaints everyone has against the regime. Arabs in Khuzestan always speak Arabic with each other, and I don't think I've ever heard anyone use the term Ahwazi as an ethnic term (Arabs from Ahvaz call themselves Ahwazi, like Persians from the city calling themselves Ahvazi). I don't know what your background is in regards to Khuzestan and whether you speak only Arabic or both languages - I'm assuming you were born and raised there judging from previous comments - but you have to admit there is a great level of discrepancy between the exile groups and Khuzestanis and the history they present (particularly in regards to Sheikh Khaz'al). Sheikh Khaz'al, for example, married several Behbahani (and I think Dezfuli as well) women, and his family lives in Tehran. They speak Arabic as their first language, but also obviously speak Persian very well and I've never heard them say anything positive about these Ahwazi groups. These groups, they want to draw a line in the sand where such lines have never existed (considering intermingling of both Arabs and Persians in the cities, as well as Arab tribes with other tribes), and even Sheikh Khaz'al never attempted any radical changes over the area he ruled and maintained close relations with the rest of the province and with Tehran (before he was kidnapped and arrested, of course).
:::::Anyway, our discussion is very interesting and I'd like to continue it, but what do you suggest concerning the title? User:SouthernComfort 03:44, 19 May 2005 (UTC)
::::::I suggest something like "Politics of Identity in Khuzestan" or something like that, which can bring together all aspects of Arab separatism, autonomy, tribalism, language, repression, poverty and ethnic grievances in the province, without the danger of framing the debate as a communal issue between ethnic groups.
::::::The Arabs in Khuzestan may not have much knowledge of Arab groups abroad, beyond the propaganda fed to them from Tehran's newspapers. I believe the main grievances are felt among the poorest Arabs. Ethnicity delineates social class in Khuzestan and that is why there is Arab political mobilisation among the poor, as witnessed in last month's riots. There are high rates of unemployment and illiteracy in Arab-dominated urban slums and these Arabs feel powerless under a political system that will only allow them representation if they do not complain. Arab farmers are also being squeezed with land confiscations for industrial-scale intensive agriculture - particularly sugar - as well as the constant threat of landmines left in the aftermath of the war.
::::::Those educated Arabs who have raised a voice against this oppressive development have been condemned as Saddam loyalists (all Arabs are treated as potential enemies), arrested, tortured, etc. Following the recent uprising, many Arab journalists, intellectuals and tribal leaders were arrested and are still being held in prison, even though they had nothing to do with the violence; they simply condemned the brutality of Iranian security forces who shot at unarmed civilians. Note that Arab intellectuals were targetted, not those of other ethnic groups, such as Shirin Ebadi, who also spoke out against government violence in Khuzestan.
::::::Arabs in Khuzestan feel separate from Iranian society because of their political and economic marginalisation. I don't know which Arabs you have spoken to, but there are a lot of problems with those in the lowest social strata.
::::::As for my own background, I am part Khuzestani Arab. My family are communists, so we are enemies of the governments of both Iran and, until recently, Iraq!--User:Ahwaz 13:50, 19 May 2005 (UTC)
:::::::I think I am in favour of 'ethnic unrest' since I've seen this used in news reports as opposed to 'conflict,' and also would not seem to presume that there is a conflict between ethnic groups. Or perhaps 'Ethnic politics of Khuzestan.'
:::::::I don't know any Arabs who are that poor, living in slums and shanty towns and villages, but I have spoken with such people, passed through their areas. I don't want to generalize, but many of them don't even speak Persian very well or at all, nor do they necessarily have access to televisions, radios, etc. I mean, if we're talking about the poorest of the poor (and there are many), they are totally cut off from society at large (even from the urban Arab society), and this includes being even cut off from the regime's 'propaganda.' I don't think the youths who rioted were that poor - certainly from the lower economic strata, but well off enough to own a simple television or radio, as opposed to villagers and nomads who have no access to anything modern.
:::::::This level of poverty is not unusual outside of the urban centres, however. In southern Tehran, for example, the regime went around for years bulldozing the poor areas, which technically no longer exist. I have no idea where they sent the people of those areas. Sistan and Baluchistan is the most economically deprived and desolate province in Iran - the Baluch have it far, far worse than the Arabs and Kurds.
:::::::Fact is, all people from the lowest social classes feel separate from Iranian society, no matter their ethnic background - whether they are Persian, Azari, Kurdish, Arab, Baluch, etc. - since they have it worse than everyone else, and are ignored completely by the regime, which only oppresses them further. So yes, I agree that if you are in such a horrible position you are not going to care much about politics or opposition groups or whatever. All you are going to be concerned about is getting the hell out of the doldrums.
:::::::Speaking of Shirin Ebadi (who is also Azari if anyone is curious, and the official 'liberal bleeding heart' spokeswoman of the regime), the article lacks any mention of Iranian Arab journalists (like Yusef Bani Torof, whom you have mentioned before) and intellectuals who were arrested. The article also lacks any details as to what happened to the rioters (I believe most were eventually released, yes?) and so forth. User:SouthernComfort 00:11, 20 May 2005 (UTC)
I think "Ethnic politics of Khuzestan" would enable us to talk more broadly, rather than focus on violence. I have a problem with just looking at the issue of Arabs in terms of security rather than the deeper socio-economic problems and discrimination, which, in fact, many Majlis members have highlighted in the weeks following the riots.
The Kuwaiti press have recently reported that hundreds of Arabs - including detained journalists and intellectuals such as Youssef Azizi Banitoruf - arrested in the recent disturbances are holding a hunger strike in Karoon prison and other prisons. They also quote a regime spokesperson as saying that 400 Arabs were still having their cases examined, which contradicts earlier statements that said only 10 Arabs remained in custody. The regime's failure to be consistent when speaking of Khuzestan's uprising makes it very difficult to write anything for the article.--User:Ahwaz 12:11, 20 May 2005 (UTC)
:Alright, 'Ethnic politics' it shall be. I'll try to make the necessary changes soon. As for the regime's consistency, I'm afraid that not much can be said about that since there is literally zero consistency. What I'm guessing is that they released the majority of protesters out on bail, i.e. their cases are still pending. So they're not exactly in the clear yet, so to speak. Those who cannot afford bail obviously remain in jail. They might be lying about the exact numbers, but my instinct tells me that it's all more or less true, because at this very moment in time, it is not in the regime's interest to provoke the Khuzestani Arabs, and I'll tell you why. Rafsanjani's son is a major player in the Iranian oil industry (second only to his father who literally controls the whole industry), and the new Yadavaran oil fields have displaced the Arab tribes people who were living there. So after all these years, with all the regime's neglect and oppression, the Arabs have had it and they are slowly reaching the boiling point in their anger towards the mullahs.
:What's most dangerous for the regime is if the Khuzestani Arabs begin uniting (i.e. not just youth, but oil workers and labourers and so forth) and protesting more loudly. The oil industry is centred in Khuzestan, and if the oil industry is halted due to strikes, then the regime collapses. If other Khuzestanis were to join with the Arabs, and if the protests were to take a more overtly anti-regime stance (rather than just focusing on provincial issues) this would lead to an even more emphatic domino effect which will most definitely be felt in Tehran, as oil workers going on strike will give more than enough certainty to other workers around the country to go on strike. The regime wants to do to the Arabs of Khuzestan what they have done to other groups affected by poverty (including Persian groups) in the past. They regime needs to prevent the Arabs from communicating with the rest of country, particularly with Tehran, since if Arab youth were able to easily communicate with the student movement in Tehran, then this would only add to the anti-regime resistance. Notice how the regime has no interest in imcreasing the literacy rate amongst Khuzestani Arabs, and they want to prevent them from being able to learn Persian. If the vast majority of Khuzestani Arabs could speak Persian, then their ties to other student and worker movements around the country would be much stronger. Without proper lines of communication, resistance literally becomes futile when faced with the foreign mercenary forces of the regime (mostly Hezbollah from Lebanon, and Palestinian recruits).
:Check out this link [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/9b9b6b3af1fb1b37e2936908b9d708f5.htm]. Notice how Khuzestan is not included in their new development plans to ease poverty. Believe me, this level of oppression will not go on for much longer. Saddam the cowardly butcher is gone and totally humiliated now (with the recent photos), and the mullahs are not so far behind. User:SouthernComfort 05:01, 21 May 2005 (UTC)
::Actually, Human Rights Watch recently reported that 400 Arabs are still being held in jails over the riots. The authorities are placing absurdly large cash bonds on the release of prisoners, something like 15 million rials. A similar amount is being demanded for the release of bodies of those killed in the violence, with HRW claiming at least 50 Arab citizens, including two children and a pregnant woman, were killed in the disturbances. How Islamic is this? The regime is about as Islamic as Adolf Hitler. You are totally right about Rafsanjani's role in oil exploitation in Khuzestan. This man is being seen as a great liberal reformist, but past experience tells us he is just going to give rhetoric. It would be wonderful if ethnic Persians would unite with Khuzestan's Arabs, but this is not happening. The students movement recently denounced the riots in Khuzestan as separatist violence and took the regime's line that this was some kind of Western conspiracy.
::You have touched on an important point. There is a linguistic gap between Khuzestan's Arabs and the opposition movement in Tehran. Moreover, it seems that the opposition is infected with some of the regime's racist assumptions about Arabs. You are totally right about the use of Hezbollah against Arabs in Khuzestan. I read that demonstrators heard those attacking them speaking in Arabic with a Lebanese accent. So much for pan-Arab solidarity! The fact is that the Arabs of Khuzestan have never had respect from foreign Arabs or other Iranians. That's why they distrust and oppose all powers that are alien to their culture. It would be wonderful if everyone could unite, but I fear that there is too much prejudice and indoctrination against Arabs.--User:Ahwaz 23:16, 21 May 2005 (UTC)
:::Yes, I think you might be right about the opposition in Tehran. I have personally never understood this myself. And it's true that Iranian Arabs have never had any respect from the Arab world - they were simply viewed as being pawns to use somehow against the state from the sixties to during the war (of course most Arabs in Khuzestan never bothered with these pan-Arabist attempts at insurrection). And since the end of the war, the Arab world doesn't care, maybe because they're viewed as being "too Iranian." I've been reading reports of mercenaries from Lebanon (and to a lesser extent Palestine) for some time now. I think the nuclear facilities in southern Iran might be guarded by some of these guys. I don't know, at some point people in Iran are either going to have to work together or otherwise suffer the consequences of total collapse of all that ever has been. I blame Pahlavi for starting all of this up in the first place.
:::And hopefully Zora will stop vandalizing these articles (the main articles in particular) so that we will be able to concentrate on these issues and expand data about Iranian Arabs in their respective pages (which are still severely lacking). I'm sorry that you had to get involved with her in the first place. At the time, I had absolutely no idea she had arrived here purely through stalking Zereshk from the Shi'a articles, and that she had no connection to you whatsoever (the way she talked, she made it appear as if you were together or something). I greatly regret that I made this equation in the first place, and hopefully she will cease her vandalism and absurdity and leave these articles alone. You're a good man, Ahwaz, and I hate to see people attempt to hijack others' causes and histories for their own obscure motives and agendas (the lack of education and understanding not withstanding). I wish I had been able to realise this from the very start, rather than to assume automatic association. We live and learn. User:SouthernComfort 08:12, 22 May 2005 (UTC)
:::Ahwaz, please see discussion at Talk:Ethnic politics of Khuzestan and your input would be appreciated. User:SouthernComfort 10:20, 22 May 2005 (UTC)
==Arabs of Khuzestan==
Started article and linked with 'Iranian Arabs' in the Khuzestan-related articles. User:SouthernComfort 12:13, 17 May 2005 (UTC)
: I stated an objection there, and you ignored me. You make a distinction between Arabic-speaking of Arabic descent and customs, and Arabic-speaking Persians of Persian descent. I have never seen this anywhere, and it strikes me as anthropologically indefensible, without genetic studies to demonstrate differences in descent. Otherwise you're left with Arabic-speakers who follow what I presume are Iraqi/Kuwaiti/Marsh Arab customs, and Arabic-speakers who have assimilated follow Persian cultural norms. If you can't come up with some genetic studies, I would mark that article as ''disputed'' as well. User:Zora 05:42, 19 May 2005 (UTC)
::You also apparently had never heard that Iran has had Azeri dynasties and rulers, and that Azeris are currently a dominant force in the political, military and intellectual spheres. I'll let Ahwaz answer your racialist nonsense if he cares to, since I've long since grown tired of every single objection you make to every single contribution I make. The only reason you are even 'interested' in these articles is because you literally 'stalked' Zereshk here from the Islam articles. Iranian Arabs (those of tribal background) find it extremely offensive to be labelled as 'Arabic-speakers,' since this implies they were (or are) Persian, and this is what both Reza Shah and his son labelled them as (Reza Shah's son also labelled them as gypsies because of their refusal to assimilate into Persian culture). They don't consider themselves Persian, they don't want to be Persian, and they have no reason to want to be because they are an indigenous Iranian group with the right to retain their culture and heritage, which are distinct to their group as Iranian Arabs. If you had any education and understanding (and sensitivity) in these matters you would know this.
::Persian Arabs, however, are different since they are of dual Arab/Persian (the term 'Persian' in this context itself not only refers to all Persian-speaking ethnic groups, but also includes Persian-speaking Azeris/Kurds and other Iranians, which are many, which you are also ignorant about) ancestry. They are not the same as Iranian Arabs in terms of history and culture, since Iranian Arabs are a tribal group. No Iranian Arab tribe has ever claimed Persian descent. The Pahlavi governments promoted the racist idea, however, that Iranian Arab tribes were originally of Persian descent.
::Most Persian Arabs are NOT connected with Khuzestan, with the exception of Persian Arabs of Bahraini origin, since these people are originally came from Khuzestan and settled in Bahrain, which always had Semitic tribal groups since even before the rise of 'Arab/Islamic' culture and from where Iranian Arab tribes may have originated. Also, Persian Arabs descended from both Persian and Arab Khuzestanis would also obviously be connected to Khuzestan - Sheikh Khaz'als family are Persian Arab (or Persian/Kuwaiti if you prefer), for example.
::Iranian Arabs are NOT immigrants. They ARE Iranian. They ARE indigenous. I have no idea if they have Persian origins - they emphatically deny this and find this idea so extremely offensive because of Pahlavi's policies. Maybe they are descended from the Elamites - but the Elamites were not Semitic, and Iranian Arabs consider themselves ethnically Semitic. I am not going to speculate from where Iranian Arabs originate from in an encyclopedia article. The only reason historians state that they 'settled in Khuzestan in the early centuries of the common era' is because there is no evidence of any 'Arab' or Semitic tribes in Khuzestan prior to that point. They may have descended from another Semitic group (Persian Jews, perhaps) and became Arabs, or maybe they were descended from the Elamites and became Semites. I have no idea. To speculate this in an encylopedia article is not right. I have too much respect for Iranian Arabs to engage in such speculations which you seem so ardent in imposing.
::As for your request for 'genetic studies,' I find that not only racist and offensive, but stupid. You are obsessed with this idea of genetic heritage and ancestry. Iranians have a common heritage which trancends Western 'racial' ideas. That's the difference between our viewpoints. I view things from a cultural/historical background (which most Iranians adhere to), while you are obsessed with race. No thanks. User:SouthernComfort 07:27, 19 May 2005 (UTC)
::Furthermore, and I forgot to add this to the above, it is false to assume that most or all Persian Arabs have assimilated into Persian culture. The Arabs of the Ebne Sina district in Isfahan are Persian Arabs of Iraqi origin and yet they speak Arabic as their mother tongue and their culture is predominantly Arabic, though they also retain some Persian cultural characteristics. There are also Persian Arabs of linguistic background like Ayatollah Sistani in Iraq who are 100% ethnic Persian (he is Mashadi/Sistani), and yet chose to immigrate to Iraq permanently and take on Arabic culture and language 100%. There are Persian Arabs who are of both ethnic Arab and Persian descent, and are culturally and linguistically 100% Persian. They are a diverse group not to be equated with Iranian Arabs (Khuzestani Arabs) who are a distinct, indigenous ethnic group in their own right. Now please stop pestering me with these trivial objections. User:SouthernComfort 11:29, 19 May 2005 (UTC)
::: I'm not obsessed with race, I'm obsessed with accuracy. It's a scholarly characteristic . In this case, you're making assertions about descent that you haven't backed up. Language and culture can be observed right now, and presumably you're operating on personal knowledge in making them (since you haven't given any sources). I'm on the fence about this -- you haven't conducted yourself in a manner that makes me trust your objectivity or accuracy, but you do have more first-hand knowledge than I do.
::: Descent is something that can be claimed by the individual, imputed by the surrounding society, and to some extent verified scientifically. Claims and imputations are again, observable in the present, but they should not be presented as fact. They can be the result of myth-making. I very much distrust the generalizations you're making about the origins of the Arabic-speaking groups of Iran. They seem to be me to be extremely confused, and apparently unfounded. Not only that, you seem to be mixing claims that these groups make for their ancestry, and outsider perceptions of their ancestry. It's a muddle.
::: As for your assertions about an Iranian heritage that transcends race ... did ''I'' ever say that culture and race were the same thing? I don't think I could have; that's the basic principle of cultural anthropology. Culture is transmitted by learning, not blood. The ability of a "high" culture to absorb and convert invaders is well-known; China is the usual example, but Iran is one too. A mixed example, since the invaders' traces remain in language, writing system, literature, and religio
Khuzestan
==Introduction== [[Image:Emamzadeh-hamzeh.jpg|thumb|right|Domes like this are quite common in Khuzestan province. The shape is an architectural trademark of craftsmen of this province. Daniel's shrine, located in Khuzestan, has such a shape. The shrine pictured here, belongs to Imamzadeh Hamzeh, located between Mah-shahr and Hendijan.]] Khuzestan is one of the 30 provinces of Iran of Iran. It is in the south-west of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its center is Ahvaz and covers an area of 63,238 sq. km. Other major cities include Behbahan, Abadan, Andimeshk, Khorramshahr, Bandar Imam, Dezful, Shushtar, Omidiyeh, Izeh, Baq-e-Malek, Mah Shahr, Dasht-e-Azadegan, Ramhormoz, Shadegan, Susa, Masjed Soleiman, Minoo Island and Hoveizeh. Historically Khuzestan is what historians refer to as ancient Elam, whose capital was in Susa, and in previous ages, Iranians referred to this province as Elam. The Old Persian term for Elam was ''Hujiyā'', which is present in the modern name. Khuzestan is the most ancient Iranian province and is often referred to in Iran as the ''"birthplace of the nation,"'' as this is the area where Aryan tribes first settled, assimilating the native Elamite population, and thus laying the foundation for the future empires of Persia, Medes , and Parthia. Khuzestan is also where Jondishapour was located. Khuzestan has 18 representatives in Iran's parliament, Majlis of Iran, and 6 representatives in the Assembly of Experts. ==Geography and Climate== According to the 1996 census, the province had an estimated population of 3.7 million people, of which approximately 62.5% were in the urban centres, 36.5% were rural dwellers and the remaining 1% were non-residents. The province of Khuzestan can be basically divided into two regions, i.e. the plains and mountainous regions. The former being in the south and west of the province. This area is irrigated by the ''Karun'', ''Karkheh'' and ''Jarahi'' rivers. The mountainous regions are situated to the north and east of the province, and are considered to be a part of southern regions of the Zagros mountain ranges. With regard to natural conditions, Khuzestan has unrivaled potentials unmatched by any other province in the country. Large permanent rivers flow over the entire territory contributing to the fertility of the land. Karun, Iran's largest river, 850 kilometers long, flows into the Persian Gulf through this province. The climate of Khuzestan is generally hot and humid, particularly in the south, while winters are much more pleasant and dry. ==People and Culture== Khuzestan, unlike other provinces in Iran, is inhabited by a number of ethnic minorities and peoples. Arabic-speakers and Arabs of Khuzestan tribes, Bakhtiari, Behbahanis, and Lurs of the north, the Qashqai, the Afshari tribes, the peoples of Dezful, Shushtar, and the inhabitants of the Persian Gulf coasts all make up the population of the province of Khuzestan. There are no official ethnic statistics released by Iran's government. The Persian groups of western Khuzestan all speak distinct dialects unique to their areas. Many Khuzestanis are bilingual, speaking both Persian language and Arabic language. It is also not uncommon to find people able to speak a variety of indigenous dialects in addition to their own. Khuzestani folk music is colorful and festive, and each native group has their own rich traditions and legacy in this area. The people of Khuzestan are generally very religious and most are Shi'a, with small Sunni, Jewish, and Christian minorities. Khuzestanis are also very well regarded for their hospitality and generosity. Seafood is the most important part of Khuzestani cuisine, but many other dishes are also featured. A popular dish is called ''soboor'' (shad), a species of fish found in southern Iranian waters, which is prepared with heavy spices, onions, and cilantro. Other provincial specialties include ''ghalieh mahi'' (fish stew), ''ghalieh maigu'' (shrimp stew), ''aasheh mohshalah'' (breakfast soup; in Khorramshahr), ''sarshir'' (heavy cream; in Andimeshk), and ''haleem'' (breakfast wheatmeal with lamb; in Shushtar). Many scientists, philosophers, and poets have come from Khuzestan, including Abu Nuwas, Abdollah-lbn-Meymoon Ahvazi, the astronomer Naubakht and his sons; as well as Jorjis, the son of Bukhtishu; Ibn Sakit, Da'bal-e-Khazai, and many more. ==The origin of the name ''Khuzestan''== '' Main article: Origin of the name Khuzestan '' The name ''Khuzestan'', which means "The Land of the Khuzi," refers to the original inhabitants of this province, the ''Khuzi'' people. The province, however, has also been called ''Arabistan'' at times, particularly after the Arab Muhammad ibn Falah, leader of the ''Msha'sha'iya'', initiated a wave of attacks on Khuzestan in 1440 CE, leading to a gradual increase in the Arab population of Khuzestan. Reza Pahlavi, however, restored the original name of the province in 1923. ==History== [[Image:Choghazanbil2.jpg|thumb|right|The ziggurat of Choqa Zanbil in Khuzestan was a magnificent structure of the Iranian Elamite Empire.]]Shush_castle,_Susa,_Iran.">Image:Shush-castle.jpg|thumb|right|Shush castle, Susa, Iran.The province of Khuzestan is one of the centres of ancient civilization, based around Susa. French archeologists such as Jaques De Morgan date the civilization here as far back as 8000 BCE when excavating areas such as ''Tal e Ali Kosh''. The first large scale empire based here was that of the powerful 4th millennium BCE Elamite Empire, a non-Semitic kingdom independent of Mesopotamia. Archeological ruins verify the entire province of Khuzestan to be home to the Elamite Empire civilization, ''"the earliest civilization of Persia"'' (according to ''A History of Persia'', S. Percy Sykes, p38). As was stated in the preceding section, the name ''Khuzestan'' is derived from the Elamites (''Ūvja'' according to ''The Cambridge History of Iran'', 2, 259, ISBN 0521060351), a non-Semitic people unrelated to their northern neighbors in Mesopotamia. (see introduction of ''The Splendour of Iran'', E. Booth-Clibborn, ISBN 1861540116) In fact, in the words of Elton Daniel, the Elamites were ''"the founders of the first Iranian empire in the geographic sense."'' (''The History of Iran'', p26, ISBN 0313000301) Hence the central geopolitical significance of Khuzestan, the seat of Iran's first empire. In 640 BC, the Elamites were defeated by Ashurbanipal coming under the rule of the Assyrians who wrought destruction upon Susa and Chogha Zanbil. But in 538 BC Cyrus II of Persia was able to re-conquer the Elamite lands. The city of Susa was then proclaimed as one of the Achaemenian capitals. Darius I of Persia then erected a grand palace known as ''Hadish'' there in 521 BC. But this astonishing period of glory and splendour of the Achaemenian dynasty came to an end by the conquests of Alexander of Macedon. And after Alexander, the Seleucid dynasty ruled the area. As the Seleucid dynasty weakened, Mithridates I of Parthia the Parthian (171-137 BCE), gained victory over the region. During the Sassanid dynasty this area thrived tremendously and flourished, and this dynasty was responsible for the many constructions that were erected in Ahvaz, Shushtar, and the north of Andimeshk. ===The Arab invasion of Khuzestan=== The Arab invasion of Khuzestan took place in 639 CE under the command of Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari who drove the Persian ''Hormozan'' out of Ahvaz. Hormozan fled to Shushtar, where his forces were besieged by Abu Musa for 18 months. Shushtar finally fell in 642 CE to Abu Musa's army, followed by Susa, Jondishapoor, and many other districts along the Tigris. The battle of Nehavand finally secured Khuzestan for the Muslim armies. (Encyclopedia Iranica, p206). The Arab settlements by military garrisons in southern Iran was soon followed by other types of colonization. Some Arab families, for example, took the opportunity to gain control of private estates. (Encyclopedia Iranica, p212). Like the rest of Iran, the Arab invasion thus brought Khuzestan under occupation of the Arabs of the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates, until Ya'qub bin Laith as-Saffar, from eastern Iran, raised the flag of independence once more, and ultimately regained control over Khuzestan, among other parts of Iran, founding the short-lived Saffarid dynasty. From that point on, Iranian Persian Kings would continue to rule the region in succession as an important part of Iran. In the latter part of the 16th century, the ''Bani Kaab'', from Kuwait, settled in Khuzestan. (see J.R. Perry, "The Banu Ka'b: An Amphibious Brigand State in Khuzestan", ''Le Monde Iranien et L'Islam I'', 1971, p133) And during the succeeding centuries, many more Arab tribes moved from southern Iraq to Khuzestan, and as a result, Khuzestan became "extensively Arabized". (Encyclopedia Iranica, p216). According to C.E. Bosworth in the ''Encyclopedia Iranica'', under the Qajar dynasty ''"... the province was known, as in Safavid times, as Arabistan, and during the Qajar period was administratively a governor-generalate."'' In the mid 1800s Britain initiated a war with Iran in a failed attempt to conquer Khuzestan. Having lost, the British continued in their attempts to wrest control of the province by supporting a number of foreign Arab tribes that had invaded Iran. The last remnants of these tribes (ruled over by Sheikh Khaz'al, of Kuwaiti origin) were finally defeated in 1925 by Reza Shah. In the past eighty years, except during the Iran-Iraq war, the province of Khuzestan thrived and prospered and today accounts for one of the regions in Iran that holds an economic and defensive strategic position. The existence of prominent scientific and cultural centers such as Academy_of_Gundishapur which gathered distiguished medical scientists from Egypt, Greece, India, and Rome, shows the importance and prosperity of this region during ancient times. The Academy_of_Gundishapur was founded by the order of Shapur_I_of_Persia (241-271 CE). It was repaired and restored by Shapur II of Persia (a.k.a. ''Zol-Aktaf'': "The Possessor of Shoulder Blades") and was completed and expanded during the reign of Anushirvan. ===The Iran-Iraq war=== Being on the border with Iraq, Khuzestan suffered the heaviest damage of all Iranian provinces during the Iran-Iraq war. What used to be Iran's largest refinery at Abadan was destroyed, never to fully recover. Many of the famous ''nakhlestans'' were annihilated, cities were destroyed, historical sites were demolished, and half the province went under the boots of Saddam's invading army. This created a mass exodus into provinces that did not have the logistical capability of taking in such a large number of refugees. However, by 1982, Iranian forces managed to push Saddam's forces back into Iraq. The battle of "''the Liberation of Khorramshahr''" (one of Khuzestan's largest cities and the most important Iranian port prior to the war) was a turning point in the war, and is officially celebrated every year in Iran. ===Struggle over the province=== The first person to launch secessionist unrests in Khuzestan was Sheikh Khaz'al, who rose to power in 1897 and had originally been supported by the British colonialists. He was finally arrested in 1925 by Reza Shah and the area of Khuzestan he had dominated returned to the province. Domination of Khuzestan was also Saddam Hussein's primary strategic objective that launched the Iran-Iraq war, which forced thousands of Iranians to flee the province. The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran does not conduct any official ethnic census in Iran, thus it is difficult to determine the exact demographics. Beginning in the early nineties, many ethnic Persian Khuzestanis began returning to the province, a trend which continues to this day as the major urban centres are being rebuilt and restored. Restoration has been slow due to neglect by the regime of the Islamic Republic. The city of Khorramshahr was almost completely decimated as a result of Saddam's scorched earth policy. Fortunately, Iranian forces were able to prevent the Iraqis from attempting to spread the execution of this policy to other major urban centres. The Iranian Embassy Siege of 1980 was a terrorist siege of the Iranian Embassy in London initiated by Arab separatists, backed by Saddam Hussein. Initially it emerged the terrorists wanted autonomy for Khuzestan; later they demanded the release of 91 of their comrades held in Iranian jails. Arab separatists supported Saddam's forces in attacking both Persian and Arab Iranian soldiers and civilians, in what could be considered an attempt at an ethnic cleansing of the Iranian population, as the majority of the Arab Khuzestani population were loyal to Iran and fought alongside other Iranians against Saddam. After the withdrawal of Iraqi forces towards the end of the war, the remainder of these Arab separatists fled to Iraq, though Saddam continued to entertain the notion of a potential future invasion of Khuzestan for many years afterwards. ==Economy== [[Image:Karun3-dam.jpg|thumb|right|The government of Iran is spending large amounts of money in Khuzestan province. The massive Karun-3 dam, was inaugurated recently as part of a drive to boost Iran's growing energy demands.]] Khuzestan is the major oil-producing region of Iran, and as such is the wealthiest province in Iran, though it is claimed that this wealth does not benefit the average citizen. The government of Iran claims the province to rank third among Iran's provinces in GDP. [http://www.ostan-kz.ir/papercutdetail_afa_pi_191.html source (in Persian)] ===Shipping=== Karun river is the only river in Iran capable of sailing. The British, up until recent decades, after the discovery by Sir Henry Layard, transported their merchandise via Karun's waterways, passing through Ahvaz all the way up to Masjed Soleiman, the site of their first oil wells in the Naftoon oil field. Karun is capable of the sailing of fairly large ships as far up as Shushtar. Karkheh, Jarrahi, Arvand, Handian, Shavoor, Bahmanshir (Bahman-Ardeshir), Maroon-Alaa', Dez, and many other rivers and water sources in the form of ''Khurs'', lagoons, ponds, and marshes demonstrate the vastness of water resourses in this region, and are the main reason for the variety of agricultural products developed in the area. ===Agriculture=== The abundance of water and fertility of soil have transformed this region into a rich and well-endowed land. The variety of agricultural products such as wheat, barley, oily seeds, rice, eucalyptus, medical herbs; the existence of many palm and citrus farms; having mountains suitable for raising olives, and of course sugar cane - from which Khuzestan takes its name - all show the great potential of this fertile plain. The abundance of water supplies, rivers, and dams, also have an influence on the fishery industries, which are prevalent in the area. ===Industry=== [[Image:Fulad-ahvaz.jpg|thumb|right|Iran has some major industrial facilities located in Ahvaz. The ''Fulad-e-Ahvaz'' steel facility is one of them.]] The Karun 3 and 4, and Karkheh Dam, as well as the petroleum reserves provide Iran with national sources of revenue and energy. The petrochemical and steel industries, pipe making, the power stations that feed the national electricity grid, the chemical plants, and the large refineries are some of Iran's major industrial facilities. The province is also home to Yadavaran Field, a major oil field. ==Universities== *# Khorramshahr University of Nautical Sciences and Technologies *# [http://www.ajums.ac.ir/ Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences] *# [http://www.put.ac.ir/ Petroleum University of Technology] *# [http://www.cua.ac.ir/ Shahid Chamran University-Ahvaz] *# [http://www.nbd.ac.ir/ Shahid Chamran University-Dezful] *# Islamic Azad University of Abadan *# Islamic Azad University of Omidiyeh *# Islamic Azad University of Ahvaz *# Islamic Azad University of Behbahan *# Islamic Azad University of Izeh ==Attractions of Khuzestan== Iran's National Heritage Organization lists 140 sites of Historical and Cultural significance in Khuzestan, reflecting the fact that the province was once the seat of Iran's most ancient empire. Some of the more popular sites of attraction include: [[Image:Metallic Parthian.jpg|right|frame|The ''Parthian Prince'', found in Khuzestan circa 100 CE, is kept at The National Museum of Iran, Tehran.]] *Choqa Zanbil: The seat of the Elamite Empire, this ziggurat is a magnificent five-story temple that is one of the greatest ancient monuments in the Middle-East today. The monolith, with its labyrinthine walls made of thousads of large bricks with Elamite inscription, manifest the sheer antiquity of the shrine. The temple was religiously sacred and built in the honor of Inshushinak, the protector deity of the city of Susa. *''Shush-Daniel'': Burial site of the Jewish prophet Daniel, who was revered by Cyrus The Great. He is said to have died in Susa on his way to Jerusalem upon the order of Darius. The grave of Ya'qub bin Laith as-Saffar, who rose against the oppression of the Umayyad Caliphate, is also located nearby. *Dezful (''Dezh-pol''), whose name is taken from a bridge (''pol'') over Dez river having 12 spans built by the order of Shapur I of Persia. This is the same bridge that was called "Andamesh Bridge" by historians such as Istakhri who says the city of Andimeshk takes its name from this bridge. Muqaddasi called it "The City of the Bridge." *Shushtar, one of the oldest fortress cities in Iran, known as the "City of Forty Elders" in local dialect. The Friday Mosque of Shushtar was built by the Abbasids. The mosque, which features "Roman" arches, has 54 pillars and balconies. *Izeh, or ''Izaj'', was one of the main targets of the invading Islamic army in their conquest of Persia. ''Kharezad Bridge'', one of the strangest bridges of the world, is situated in this city and was named after Ardeshir Babakan's mother. It is built over casted pillars of lead each 104 meters high. Ibn Battuta, who visited the city in the 14th century, refers to many monasteries, caravanserais, aqueducts, schools, and fortresses in the town. The brass statue of ''The Parthian Man'', kept at the National Museum of Iran, is from here. *Masjed Soleiman, another ancient town, has ancient fire alters and temples such as ''Sar-masjed'' and ''Bard-neshondeh''. It is also the winter's resting area of the Bakhtiari tribe, and where William Knox D'Arcy dug Iran's first oil well. *Abadan is said to be where the tomb of Elias, the long lived Hebrews prophet is. *''Iwan of Hermes'', and ''Iwan of Karkheh'', two enigmatic ruins north of Susa. ==See also== *Ahvaz *Susa *Choqa Zanbil *Iran-Iraq war *Ethnic politics of Khuzestan *Islamic conquest of Iran ==External links== *[http://www.hafttappeh.ir/ Haft Tappe archeological site in Khuzestan] *[http://www.choghazanbil.ir/ Choqa Zanbil Ziggurat Official website] *[http://www.ostan-kz.ir/ Official website of Khuzestan Governorship] *[http://www.ayapir.com/ Ayapir archeological site] *[http://www.bakhtiaritribe.net/khuzestan.html The History of Khuzestan according to Bakhtiari tribes of Khuzestan] *[http://www.khouz.medu.ir/ Khuzestan Province Department of Education] (in Persian) *[http://www.iranonline.com/iran/khuzestan/images/ Images of Khuzestan] Provinces of Iran fa:استان خوزستان
Khuzestan
==neutrality?== This article seems to be written from a too pro-iran and anti-arab stance. I think it needs neutralization. : Can you mention some facts missing or is it just feeling? User:Pavel Vozenilek 17:21, 19 Apr 2005 (UTC) What's missing are periods of Babylonian, Assyrian, Greek, Roman, Arabic, Ottoman, and British rule. Also missing are the Kabide Emirate and the former name of the province, Arabistan. As are the Arab-speaking population of the province, who may be a majority (a Khuzestani Arab editor, Ahwaz, estimates that somewhere between 30-60% of the population is Arabic-speaking). Also missing is a link to the new article, Ethnic conflict in Khuzestan. The Iranian editors Vereshk and Southern Comfort are extremely active in this article, also in the Ahvaz, Iran-Iraq war, and Ethnic conflict in Khuzestan articles, trying to ensure that Wikipedia contains nothing that challenges their POV. Yes, I'm cranky
#The British? Actually, I also have access to extensive documentation about the British colonial rule, and how they instigated Arab secessionism in Khuzestan to protect their national oil interests. Great Britain has attempted to separate Khuzestan from Iran on 7 different campaigns during the past 300 years.[http://www.farhangiran.com/pdf/khoozestan+manouchehr%20yazdi.pdf (for our Farsi readers)] #"Kabide Emirate"? I can also add an entire section about how the Kabide tribe emigrated to Khuzestan from Kuwait during the Zand Dynasty, and how Sheikh Khaz'al (who came from this tribe) first came up with the name "Arabistan". There's even a Goddamn district named after him and his family in Kuwait ("Khaz'aliyah"). The more Pan-Arab revisionists like Zora insist on this page being "Persian nationalist", the more we will throw in documentation illustrating the utter fallacy of their claims. (while making the page even more accurate) No really, did you think it was that easy to claim Susa as Arab? We lost 1 million lives in a fuckin war against Saddam who made the very exact claims.--User:Zereshk 17:43, 5 May 2005 (UTC) :Not to mention the fact that she is simply throwing around names of other empires like the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Ottomans, ad nauseum. She simply has no education in Iranian history and doesn't seem to realise that Khuzestan has always been part of Iran as a nation. Next she will be claiming that Fars, Mazandaran, Gilan, and all the other 30 provinces have never been part of Iran. The whole thing with the Ottomons is just weird - last time I checked the Turks never ruled over any part of Iran. And as I have stated to her before, the British never ruled over Khuzestan - they did, however, try on several occasions to conquer the province, without any luck. It's funny you mention Saddam, because the butcher's uncle did promote this same sort of revisionist and racist propaganda against not only Persians, but also against Kurds and Jews. :It is clear to me that she is a hateful person with a grudge against Iranians, Shi'a, and who knows what other people. The historical facts have been presented, they are able to be verified, there are more than enough references on these subjects. When faced with all these facts, which can be referenced in any decent library, and yet she continues to attack these very same facts as being 'Persian nationalist.' Notice she is the only one making so much noise concerning this matter? This whole 'thing' of hers is just purely absurd. I've never seen such an extreme level of ignorance in all of my life. How many times will we have to deal with this insanity? User:SouthernComfort 18:38, 5 May 2005 (UTC) == Politeness, please == Don't start a war between you. Discuss politely and try to get a solution to your argument. --User:Imaglang 14:34, 12 May 2005 (UTC) :I agree with you, however I think you may also agree that it is extremely difficult and frustrating (and ultimately pointless) to debate with someone (Zora, in this case) who consistently denies established history and insists on pushing what is undeniably a 'pan-Arabist' agenda promoted by a fringe anti-Iranian political group which she picked up from their website. The revisionism (and blatant denial of established history) that she has attempted to promote is not accepted at all by any academic or scholarly source and I invite you, as a third-party, to research this for yourself. As far as I'm concerned the issue is closed as I do not have the time nor the inclination to entertain her denial of history in the name of furthering of a POV political agenda, which I personally and sincerely find extremely offensive. User:SouthernComfort 23:22, 12 May 2005 (UTC) ::Southern Comfort: I have tried to give a neutral account of Arab heritage in Khuzestan on the "ethnic conflict in Khuzestan" section and you and another have denied there is any Arab heritage (a revisionist standpoint), insisted that I was anti-Iranian (which I am absolutely not), deleted parts of what I wrote that did not conform to you beliefs and accused me of lying. There is absolutely no way anyone can write about the racism, forced migration, unequal access to education, healthcare and media or any other aspects of Persianisation apartheid enforced on the Ahwazi Arabs by the regime in Tehran. I think that sometimes you act as an apologist for these mullahs. No-one else is allowed to write on Iran but you and your friends.--User:Ahwaz 23:51, 12 May 2005 (UTC) :::I did not delete anything that you contributed, so please do not start making things up. You did not even add anything related to the so-called 'Arab heritage,' instead focusing your efforts on these fringe (yes, fringe - find me some evidence that any Iranian Arabs support these groups) political groups, and I did not delete that section, and instead simply pointed out that the views of these groups adheres to historical revisionism and that it is uncertain whether Iranian Arabs support these groups or not. You call me an apologist for the mullahs? Who the hell do you think you are? My family is from Khuzestan, and I still have many relatives there, most of whom have suffered through not only the barbaric atrocities of Saddam's invasion, but also through the fact that the regime has almost totally ignored the restoration of Khuzestan - which has affected EVERYONE, not just the Arab minority or any other minority. The whole province has remained stagnant since the end of the war thanks to the regime. We've gone over all this again and again and again. As to your other comments, there is nothing in these pages that is historically inaccurate or false. Khuzestan has always been a part of Iran, and it's dominant heritage has always been Iranian throughout history. I challenge anyone to prove otherwise. User:SouthernComfort 01:06, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ::::Southern Comfort: You are wrong on this. You are wrong that Arabs are a minority of just 500,000, when in fact there are 4.5 million Arabs in Iran, most of them in Khuzestan. I have shown you a document to prove this, but you still believe the Mullahs' lies. Arabs suffered the most from the Iran-Iraq War. It was Ahwazi Arab children who were forced to walk to their deaths in "human wave" attacks in the war, with the Persian mullahs promising them "paradise" for their martyrdom. It was Ahwazi Arab girls who were employed to carry out mine clearance. It was cities with Ahwazi Arab majorities - Khorramshahr, Abadan, Susa, Ahwaz City, Khafajieg, Shadegan, Susangard - that were worst affected. Ahwazi Arabs were the human shield in the war between two tyrannies. Only 10-20 per cent of Arab towns have been rebuilt since 1988, while the government is busy building new towns for "loyal" non-Arabs it is bringing into the province to change its ethnic make-up. The regime is planning to divert rivers in Khuzestan, such as the Karoon, to supply cities such as Kerman and deny Arabs access to vital water sources. The current regime, like the Pahlavis, is based on ethnic supremacy. The difference between the Pahlavis and the Ayatollahs is that the latter justify their racism through religion. The denial of Iran's multi-ethnic identity and the assumption that there is only one Persian identity is an aspect of this racial supremacy that has surfaced more than once on Wikipedia.--User:Ahwaz 11:58, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :::::Firstly, my opinion that Arabs are a minority in Khuzestan is just that - an opinion, and we agreed to avoid any mention of the current ethnic proportion on these pages. Why do you keep bringing up dead issues? As for your other statements, they are extremely POV and cannot be backed up. Like I said, EVERYONE suffered through the war and under this regime - regardless of their ethnicity. To say that one group suffered more than the other is POV. The way you talk, you make it seem like Arabs are the only people who exist in Khuzestan and are the only ones having a hard time, which is totally false. By the way, have you ever considered that a lot of the 'non-Arabs' who are moving to Khuzestan are actually Persian Khuzestanis returning to the province after all these years? Anyway, this discussion has nothing to do with the fact that you and Zora have declared your intentions to rewrite what already are NPOV and factually accurate articles (Khuzestan and Ahvaz). User:SouthernComfort 15:50, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ::::::Of course my statements can be backed up. They are backed up by every human rights organisation and independent journalist who has visited Khuzestan and covered the Iran-Iraq War. Of course the Ahwazi Arabs suffered more from war than others. The war was largely fought in Khuzestan, where the Arabs are the largest ethnic group. Anyway, this is not simply a matter of factual accuracy, but putting forward the debates surrounding ethnicity and heritage in Khuzestan. You refuse to even consider publishing alternative viewpoints, unless they are accompanied by a refutation that they are make-believe. Is this not POV? Anyway, where have I declared my intention to rewrite articles? I just want to expand articles so they have some balance. I don't want to delete anything. You are the one who is rewriting and deleting content, not me. Show me one example of where I have done anything like rewriting content. I just want balance, that's all.--User:Ahwaz 17:38, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ---- We didn't agree. You kept deleting any discussion of population estimates, SC, and we got tired of putting up material that was excised as soon as put up. Neither Ahwaz nor I particularly want to play revert war. We'd just like you to allow other viewpoints to be represented! You don't seem to get the idea of NPOV. You think it means "true". It doesn't. It means taking a neutral attitude as to existing controversies. If A and B believe in diametrically opposite POVs, the article should not take sides with A or B. It should say, A believes that, and present an accurate summary of the case, and then B believes that, and present an accurate summary of the case. Clearly, there are controversies here. There is ample evidence of ethnic unrest, discord, separatism, etc. I have also put up links to material discussing current historical trends questioning nationalist history. All that should be presented -- not as the truth, but as existing POVs. Ahwaz and I don't want to erase your views, we want them represented. If all views get an adequate presentation, if there are enough links to websites and books, then the reader can ponder the arguments and make up his or her own mind. It is NOT the purpose of a Wikipedia article to decide for the reader, to tell him/her what is the "truth". User:Zora 16:05, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ==Zora's intentions: sneaky vandalism== I urge all third-parties to see [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Ahwaz Ahwaz's talk page] and Zora's comments there. These articles, despite being historically accurate and using information from academic sources, have consistently been undermined by User:Zora. Other users and I have done our best to present the established, accepted history of Khuzestan and Ahvaz in the main articles, while Zora has attempted to undermine those efforts by flagrantly deleting accepted data by accusing us of 'Persian nationalism.' Her ideas concerning Khuzestan's heritage and history come from a number of fringe anti-Iranian 'Ahwazi' political groups - the views of which are NOT accepted by any academic or scholarly source. She considers any attempt to avoid historical speculation and revisionism on these pages to be 'censorship.' I disagree. I believe revisionism and denial of established history has no place in these main articles. If she wants to create separate articles that deal with revisionist history, then that's something. This sort of behaviour on Zora's part would never be tolerated in any other location articles that have a great many contributors who are educated in the subject. Zora appears to now have gone to her admin friends in attempt to bully us into submission to her revisionist views, and has openly declared that she will rewrite these articles to fit her conception of NPOV - which apparently requires that speculation and historical denial be entertained in the main articles. Never mind the fact that many hours of hard work and research went into these articles - now she has declared that she wants to not only delete our edits out of spite, but also to promote her own revisionist agenda. Quite frankly I wish there were more knowledgeable editors here so that people like Zora cannot get away with their nonsense. There is established and accepted history and then there is historical revisionism/denial. She has so far proven herself to belong to the latter group. As I said, this sort of behaviour would never be tolerated in any other main articles, and it should not be tolerated here. The way she is going about things, this will never end, and I have all the time and patience in the world to ensure that the facts remain intact within these articles. User:SouthernComfort 16:09, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :You are the bully here. You are imposing your version of truth and denying the fact that there is an academic debate about Khuzestan's history and ethnicity. So what if you think something is revisionist? Who are you to make this judgement? Unless these intellectual debates are reflected in Wikipedia without accusations of "revisionism", there is no chance that these entries can be regarded as NPOV.--User:Ahwaz 17:42, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :: Southern Comfort wrote: "There is established and accepted history and then there is historical revisionism/denial." I don't think you understand how history is DONE if you think that historians agree on what's ''true'' and then it is true forever more, amen. All history is interpretation; it isn't cut and dried. Historians are squabbling all the time about what the facts are and how they should be interpreted. I know this; I've done actual historical research, put in my time in dusty archives, contributed to published work (as a research assistant), and read a fair bit of historical debate. These debates can be rancorous, but the participants at least put on a mask of collegiality and mutual respect. (Though anyone with an experience of academe knows just how venomous someone can sound when saying "my esteemed colleague"